Magnus
'Introduction' Magnus, officially the Consolidated Holdings of Magnus, is an semi-independent corporate colony and the headquarters of Weyland-Yutani. 'Star Geography' Wolf 359, or Heidelberg as its colonist call it, is a red dwarf star that is located in the constellation Leo, near the ecliptic. At a distance of approximately 7.8 light years from the Earth, Heidelberg is one of the nearest stars to the Sol-system; only the Alpha Centauri-system (including Proxima Centauri) and Barnard's Star are known to be closer. Wolf 359 is a relatively young star with an age of less than a billion years and among one of the faintest and lowest-mass stars known. At the light-emitting layer called the photosphere, it has a temperature of about 2,800 K, which is low enough for chemical compounds to form and survive. The absorption lines of compounds such as water and titanium(II) oxide have been observed in the spectrum. The surface has a magnetic field that is stronger than the average magnetic field on the Sun. As a result of magnetic activity caused by convection, Wolf 359 is a flare star that can undergo sudden increases in luminosity for several minutes. These flares emit strong bursts of X-ray and gamma ray radiation that have been observed by space telescopes. While Wolf 359 is a cluttered system, containing several extensive asteroid and debris belts that make it a magnet for astro-mining, it does have three worlds: *Wolf 359 I (Maximilian) *Wolf 359 II (Gisela) *Wolf 359 III (Magnus) 'Planetary Geography and Climate' Magnus shares most of its formation, geography and appearance with Earth's moon Luna. It is thought that Magnus formed as a result of a giant impact: one planet-sized body hitting another, blasting material into orbit around it, which accreted to form Magnus. Due to the young age of Heidelberg, it is thought that this impact could have occurred only within the last 600-million years. Magnus is larger than Earth's moon of Luna, with a mean radius of 2,181-km and takes 42.5 hours to complete one orbit and completes a solar orbit every 13-years. Magnus has an atmosphere so tenuous as to be nearly vacuum. Its sources include outgassing and sputtering, the release of atoms from the bombardment of soil by solar wind ions. Elements that have been detected include sodium and potassium, produced by sputtering, helium-4 from the solar wind. These gases can either return into the regolith due to Magnus's gravity, or be lost to space: either through solar radiation pressure, or if they are ionised, by being swept away by the solar wind's magnetic field. 'History' 'Exploration' The first explorers to arrive at Wolf 359 were abroad the exploration ship UES Karolina Wisniewska in January 2087, over 168-years since it's discovery in 1919. The crew of the Karolina Wisniewska named the binary inner worlds of the system Maximilian and Gisela, in honor of Wolf 359's discover Maximilian Franz Joseph Cornelius Wolf (June 21, 1863 – October 3, 1932), a German astronomer and a pioneer in the field of astrophotography, and his wife, Gisela Wolf. 'Early Settlement' By 2098 the Württemberg Station was built in orbit of Wolf 359 III to served as a trading post and stopover for the colony fleets of the Exodus Program to refuel, as well as an orbital tether for ground-side mining complexs seeking to tap its rich titanium and nickle deposits. The station/trading post received it's name from Baden-Württemberg, Germany, one of the 16 states of Germany and home to the city of Heidelberg, where Maximilian Wolf was born and went to university. Early settlers came from those that bristled at the control exterted by United Earth-influence over Sol-system based companies. Heavy taxation and safety regulations during that period made any privately operated space company very difficult. A corporate group of influential mega-comgolemrations, headed by Weyland-Yutani CEO Kenneth Weyland, sought a site for a colony free from Earth control but not its economy. 'Weyland-Yutani Buyout' In 2105, Kenneth Weyland bought Württemberg Station and thereafter its planet-side mining complexs on Wolf 359 III and renamed the ground-based settlement Magnus. Following the discovery of nickel, latinum, iron, pergium and cobalt in 2106 on the nearby asteroid of Rupert AVI, Magnus's population began to rise and numerous mining corporations began to shift operations to the system, to which Weyland-Yutani Corporation could charge mining rights towards. The funds produced through Weyland-Yutani's lease of mining rights, along with several key investments made by Kenneth Weyland, allowed the company to purchase a controlling stock interest in the Ninth Exodus Fleet and its Macross Island-class colony vessel the UES Max Planck when it launched in 2111. When it arrived at Magnus in 2116 with 20-million colonists, the company was able to use its position as primary stockholder to repurpose the massive Planck as the largest transport freighter in the galaxy, the only time a Macross-class colony ship was not decommissioned upon its arrival at its destination to use in colonization efforts. The Planck soon returned to Earth in 2121 carrying over 600-million tons of ore, then returning with industrial machinery and 7-million colonists. This continued transit route allowed Magnus' population and infrastructure to grow to become the largest colonial settlement outside of Sol-system and the largest exporter to Earth in the entire United Earth territory. 'Battle of Magnus' On 9 March 2154, not even a full year into the Xindi Conflict, the Xindi light cruiser XSS Denem attacked the Coalition subspace communication relay on Brashear Station and was engaged by the Romulan light cruiser ICS Selis. The battle was the first military action fought by the Romulan Civil States without a direct counterpart from another Coalition member vessel. Denem was destroyed, almost 2/3 her crew captured and the survivors were interred at Württemberg Station in Magnus orbit. Coalition deaths however numbered 22 when the Denem opened fire and nearly destroyed Brashear Station, killing over half the crew. 'Armed Forces' *'_:' 'Society and Culture' Magnus is governed via the corporate-council system. The council is selected from the largest stockholding companies or individuals to a four year term. The colony council is called the Board of Supervisors and has ten members. Members can not be elected for more than four total terms. 'Galactic Location' Magnus is 7.8 light years from the Earth. 'Provinces and Cities' *'Charlemagne': Capital settlement of Magnus and headquarters for the Weyland-Yutani. 'Points of Interest' *'Württemberg Station': Built in 2098 to served as a trading post and stopover for the colony fleets of the Exodus Program to refuel, as well as an orbital tether for ground-side mining complexs seeking to tap its rich titanium and nickle deposits. Category:Colonies Category:United Earth Worlds Category:Planets Category:Geography Category:Coalition Member World